Every year we make resolutions and they probably all sound great at that time (hurry, we are going to be better), but how often we stick by them?
We usually stay firm or stick with them for a couple of weeks or so but slowly we forget them. Thus, the biggest problem seems to be with the kind of resolutions and commitments we make with ourselves or with anybody.
There are some other questions which we need to ponder on:
- Why we want those resolutions?
- How important are those commitments are for us?
According to the GOAL-SETTING Theory – ‘Specific and challenging goals make us work the harder and perform well.’ We need to start to pin down what makes us stay motivated for a long term. In that way, your success can be measured.
Measuring success works big time because through this we can see how far we have reached and how all this is coming along so, you can’t give up soon.
Studies say you’re more likely to be successful if you aim high (as long as the goal is still within reach). Goals need to be harder and take longer to achieve.
Key factors success
- Self-Efficacy: Self-efficacy helps in achieving a goal. When people don’t meet those goals, they are more likely to feel bad about themselves or consider themselves a failure.
So, choose those resolutions that aren’t too easy or aren’t too hard but just right.
- Intrinsic Motivation: Stop doing something because you ‘want’ to, and do things that you ‘have’ to. Don’t do something for the sake of enjoyment. Just do things which motivate you to remain committed towards your goals that will ultimately lead you to success.
- Tracking: Tracking your progress and getting feedback on how you are doing can help you pinpoint your weaknesses, and allow you to seek help wherever needed.
Giving significance to your resolutions and commitments is mandatory because you can never commit to something which doesn’t keep any importance in your life.
How you frame your success and failures is important as focusing on one thing often comes at the expense of others. Focusing on a short-term goal might cause you to overlook long-term goals.
Habits which leads you to be successful
- Take full responsibility for your life
Successful people never complain about anything, and they never blame anybody for anything.
- Know your priorities
Those who see success as the ones who know how to set priorities, and are able to do important work first.
- Create a routine
How to start your day with full positivity? Making the resolutions part of your routine can increase your chance of success.
- Mindfulness practice
You might have heard how celebrities or leaders often do meditation for their peace of mind. It improves your emotional and emotional well being.
- Read and learn continuously
Successful people read continuously and are highly selective about their reading and learning.
- Discipline and self-control
Once you have defined your priorities and made a solid commitment to your goal, you’ll need to be disciplined enough to follow your plan.
- Extremely consistent
Consistency is powerful, only because you know the great goal it will help you achieve. Performing a particular task at a particular time reminds you of your commitments and resolutions – and improves your success rate.
The road to success is through staying firm with your resolutions and commitments. Success can only be achieved by hard work. Consistent hard work and efforts can take you the long way in life because a person who does not work hard towards achieving the success is lost somewhere on the way.
Suppose you are doing an MBA in Australia (or in any overseas study destination) and you have an assignment where you have to make a business plan. You are an international student and do not have any idea about the structure of the business plan you are expected to prepare and are not very good in the language in which you need to present your plan.
Keeping the above points in mind, you need to take your own responsibility, set your priorities, and create a routine to work at the assignment step-by-step. You may seek online help from a business plan assignment expert, and ask him to guide you to the resources you can read and learn from.
While you might use that help to prepare an assignment solution quickly and submit it on time, you must:
- seek help from your friends, seniors, and teachers,
- read through sample business plans available online,
- work on your language and writing skills, and
- keep trying to come up with business plans on your own until you develop the knack for it.
The persistence and the courage to keep on going when you feel completely lost – will help you succeed in just about anything in life.
Stay focused
You must ask yourself some questions:
- What do you want from yourself?
- What do you want out of your job?
- What makes you feel alive?
- How will you get to know you’ve reached a milestone?
- What all things make you happy?
Answers to all those questions are very simple. Your life will feel better if you have a goal and you are focused on the commitments and resolutions for achieving that goal in life.
Staying focused in life brings a boost in confidence and self-esteem.
If you have ever wanted something in life so much that you dream about it and talk about it all the time, you’ll find it easier to stay focused on it. Once you learn to remain focused, magic happens in your life, and it leads you to success.
As billionaire Mark Cuban once said, “Everyone is passionate about something in life. Don’t follow your passion, follow your efforts.”
Plan for success
The key to success in life is planning.
Commitments and resolutions guide us where to Stop and where to start. Planning is important for everything in life. Planning is a requirement for arriving at any destination. Plans give you future and hopes. We should plan because:
- A good plan is like a roadmap; it not only shows you the final destination but also gives you the best way to reach there.
- Plans may change, but the purpose doesn’t change. It means if you meet any obstruction on the way to success, don’t just turn back but just find the other way to get to the destination.
Staying firm with resolutions and commitments which leads you to success needs a lot of planning which is one of the important components.
Planning is giving your life purpose and meaning. Dreams don’t change your life, but plans do. Therefore, planning is the most important element in the process of success.
Develop yourself
Success comes with the right mindset which helps you to grow in life. Nurturing yourself helps you:
- Gain new opportunities,
- Gives a boost to your self-confidence,
- Helps you evolve through the various stages of life.
Take time to find what are your best qualities, and what are your weakest points. Then, work on the areas where you need to improve. You can only resolve your problems and face new challenges, when you change the way you look at things, handle them, and grow your network of people who can support you in your endeavors.
Successful people:
- Are self-aware,
- Practice gratitude,
Surround themselves with like-minded people, achieves, and people who can inspire them,
- Are goal-oriented, and
- Are proactive and do not hesitate in taking initiatives.
Loving the journey is more important than the result. Start loving your resolutions and commitments because when you start loving something, you give a wholehearted effort towards bringing them to fruition.
Here are some beautiful lines by Steve Jobs:
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you will find it.”
Summing up, we can say that for staying firm with resolutions and commitments which leads us to success, you need focus, proper planning and the will to evolve. Successful people enjoy the process of growing, instead of waiting for the end-results. Success is not a destination; it is a journey that you must learn to undertake.